Determinants of Beggars' Income in Dhaka City: Do the Disabled Beggars Earn More than the Able Bodied Beggars?
Goswami, G. G., Musa, P. M., Nishat, S., Banu, L. N., and Dasgupta, U. (2013). Determinants of Beggars' Income in Dhaka City: Do the Disabled Beggars Earn More than the Able Bodied Beggars?", Journal of Society, Economy, and Development, 1(2), 35-54.
Posted: 6 May 2020
Date Written: 2013
Abstract
Begging has always been a major way out for the helpless poor and the disabled. However, not all beggars are poor or motivated into begging by poverty or disability and not all the poor are beggars. This, therefore, necessitates he need to re-examine the concept of begging and related issues This paper makes an attempt to investigate he characteristics of beggars in Dhaka city and search or an explanation why people do beg in general, and what determines the income differential between the disabled and the able-bodjed beggars, in particular. Using a stratified random sample of 477 beggars across 10 different parts of Dhaka city in Spring 2012, we examine the presence of significant income difference between the disabled and the able-bodied beggars by using one way ANOVA and two sample -tests. It has been found that the disabled beggars earn more from begging than the able-bodied beggars. More particularly, one sample t-test found that while income of disabled beggars lie above the international poverty line of $1.25 per day, income of able bodied beggars do not. Multivariate analysis reveals that being a male of working age with disability is the most favorable features that help attract more alms. It also reveals the differences in income from begging among different begging sites. From the frequency analysis of the sample data we observe that majority of the beggars are illiterate, landless, and migrated from the rural parts of the country which are plagued by high poverty. The research finding will be helpful in formulating effective policies designed or combating the issue of begging.
Keywords: Beggars in Dhaka City; ANOVA; T Test; Bangladesh; Multi Variate Analysis
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